Believe What You Like But Know What You Must

People are free to be consumed with contemplating their existence, their origins, the origins of the universe, supreme beings, controllers of destiny or anything else. But solving "the Great Mystery" is neither a requirement of being Ohnkwe Ohnwe nor does it provide a path to righteousness. I maintain that spirituality does not require faith or the leaps that faith requires but rather awareness. If it helps to believe that "God has a plan" and we just must have faith that "He" knows what "He" is doing, then walk that path. My interest is in taking the mystery out of life by pointing to the obvious that is ignored everyday in the midst of fanatical ideology and the sometimes not too subtle influences of promoting beliefs over knowledge. I have said it before: “beliefs are what you are told, knowledge is what you experience”. I support a culture that prepares us to receive knowledge and to live a life with purpose. I am certainly not suggesting there is only one way to do that.

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Sunday, January 3, 2010

A New Year, Our New Future

A new year and a new decade. It would be worn out to suggest that we are entering unprecedented times; we are always entering unprecedented times. We have gone in and out of periods of self destruction and have faced the threats from the outside as well. We have struggled to survive as people and as a people.

This is where we are now.

Our battle is much more about our survival as a distinct people than it is about struggling to stay alive. Alcohol and drugs will continue to take its toll, as will the degradation of our families but for the most part we have to accept these as our problems and take the steps to correct them. These issues, as wide spread as they may seem, still only impact a small minority of our people. Most of us will survive our childhood and most of us will survive our partying years. It may take a few tries for some of us but eventually we do settle into some semblance of a family.

My concern is more for our communities, our culture and our Native society as a whole. This is what defines us as a people and this is what is still under siege from the outside. As our people have looked to improve life in our communities and our nations, they have all too often looked to the outside for a path to follow. We sent our best and brightest out to become lawyers, accountants and planners. We adopted regulatory systems, including courts and law enforcement from the outside. We partnered with their financiers and their politicians. We hired their lawyers, their managers, their developers and all the crooks and carpet baggers amongst them. So now the threat is fairly well planted within our communities. Make no mistake about it, it is still an outside threat, but our politicians and "educated" are as much a part of the assimilation and watering down of our identity as those that would "kill the Indian, save the man".

We live in a world that sucks everything out of the Earth and puts very little back. This is done by creating a world order based on consumerism. Create a need and you create the needy. We have to decide whether we want to continue down the path of assimilation and consumerism.

Many will sing the praises of Indian gaming and many of us have seen much financial success. But defining success will be part of the challenge. Sustainability, renewable resources and culture based economy are not just discussion topics. They must become a part of meaningful economic development and personal development. We can insulate ourselves from outside economic forces if we become self sufficient in a sustainable manner. Our future depends on reflecting to our past as we move to the future. The next decade will tell us volumes about our long term existence. Happy New Year and Happy New Decade. Let's keep our Seventh Generation in mind as we go into the future.

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NYS Form CG-15 for Cigarette Use Tax

The applicable New York State use tax, New York City use tax, or combined state and city use taxes are imposed on cigarettes used in the state or within the state and New York City, unless:— the cigarette tax (imposed pursuant to Tax Law, section 471) has been paid, as evidenced by the presence of the New York State or New York State and New York City joint tax stamp affixed to the package of cigarettes; or— the cigarettes being used are specifically exempted from the cigarette tax by Tax Law section 471 (governmental use by the United States, New York State, and the United Nations, and use by authorized persons purchasing from a voluntary unincorporated organization of the armed forces of the U.S.); or— the cigarettes being used are brought into New York State (or into New York State and New York City) on or in the possession of the user, and the number of cigarettes does not exceed 400 (i.e., two cartons or less of standard packages of cigarettes).

Rahnatakaias Lies about the Changes that Will Come to Washington

PACT Act a hidden pwer grab for the states

Saying You're Proud Isn't Enough

It is not enough to say you are proud to be Native and proud of your culture. By removing the dust from our past, we reveal who we really are. Honor your ancestors by carrying knowledge forward.

From Jack Weatherford's "Indian Givers"

The most consistent theme in the descriptions penned about the New World was amazement at the Indians’ personal liberty, in particular their freedom from rulers and from social classes based on ownership of property. For the first time the French and the British became aware of the possibility of living in social harmony and prosperity without the rule of a king.

Our First Covenant

"Our first and most sacred covenant is with Nature and our Mother, the Earth."

Kaneseraga

Now They Are Using Our Wampum for Their Wampum

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YouTube Videos of the Hearing

Remove The Dust

We have lost our way, not our ways. We have let others define us with their telling of history, their view of spirituality, their laws and their economy. Our belief systems are not lost. They are covered with ignorance, fear and shame; just dust. It is time to Remove The Dust. This is the expression our ancestors used when it was time to remind ourselves who we are. By removing the dust from our old wampums we could revisit their meanings and most of all, talk about it. We are referred to as an oral society as if that is some how primative. Our voices are the most powerful tools we have. The ability to speak and listen is the power to teach and learn. For all the writing and reading we will ever do, it would teach us nothing if we couldn't discuss it. Technology now allows us to have voices in this new medium. So let's talk. Let's teach. Let's learn.

The First Post on Native PrideNovember 17, 2008

Flying the Flag

Photo by Sireena

Quote by Dragging Canoe

"Treaties with the whites may be ok for those who are too old to hunt or fight, as for me, I have my young warriors about me and we will keep our lands."

Bridges Reopen

Bridges blocked again, this time for 5 hours

Obama Speaks Out Three Days After the OPP Attack a Peaceful Demonstration at Tyendinega

"Whenever I see violence perpetrated on people who are peacefully dissenting, and whenever the American people see that, I think they are rightfully troubled. I think it would be wrong for me to be silent about what we've seen over the last few days."

Barack Obama - June 15, 2009

Yeah right! You didn't really think he was talking about us, did you? (see the June 12, 2009 post)

OPP Attack Mohawk Protesters

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The two most recognizable flags in Indian Country: The Warrior Flag and The Hiawentha Belt Flag fly at the abandoned Canadian border facility. (click the photo for ICT article)